Koome rejects call to pick land inquiry team

Chief Justice Martha Koome says court can only protect vulnerable land owners, where proper evidence is presented before it. [File, Standard]

Chief Justice Martha Koome has declined to establish a judicial land inquiry committee to investigate and document alleged fraudulent dealings in land matters.

Despite a complaint by Nakuru activist Evans Kimori that there was a syndicate where land grabbers had been exploiting the judiciary to defraud residents, Koome insisted she had no constitutional authority to set up the inquiry.

In a letter, Koome, through Muciimi Mbaka, Senior Legal Counsel, stated that the constitution does not give her authority to establish a Judicial Land Inquiry.

“Please note that the CJ has no constitutional, statutory or administrative power or authority to establish such an inquiry,” read the letter.

Koome said the court can only protect vulnerable land owners, where proper evidence is presented before it. She also pointed out that even with the alleged syndicate, the court cannot hear land matters which have been determined.

“Where such matters are filed fresh, it is the duty of the complainants to raise it with the court for appropriate orders,” said Koome.

He advised Kimori and other litigants to report case by case, noting that each case is determined by its own merit.

Kimori had on September 19, written to the CJ, raising a red alert on an alleged land fraud syndicate in Nakuru.

He claimed that land grabbers have been using the judiciary to defraud citizens of property.

“The fraud syndicate has taken root in Nakuru. The judicial system has been used as a tool to dispossess rightful landowners, particularly widows, orphans, the elderly, and vulnerable citizens,” he said.

According to Kimori, once individuals lawfully inherit or acquire property, they are targeted by coordinated land grabbers who file multiple court cases to frustrate them.

He noted that court orders are usually issued restraining genuine owners from utilizing their land while the cases drag on for years, denying them the right to benefit from their property.